Marvel Comics
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It’s interesting that I should be talking about Tony Stark and all his foibles and character flaws this week, because May 3rd to May 9th is also Mental Health Week. And that’s important to me. The Canadian Mental Health Association website has more information on this week of awareness.
Anyone who’s read my blog with any regularity has probably come across a post or two wherein I talk about my own mental health, my challenges with it, my depression, and my struggles to stay motivated. It’s an ongoing battle, and it’s one I fight every day. I’m dealing with things better than I did a few months ago, but I still have to keep a close eye on myself.
So here we are, then, with the countdown to Iron Man 2 overlapping with Mental Health Week. At first glance, it would seem that these two events have little in common. Practically nothing, in fact. The common thread is there, however, and I’ve latched onto it. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: armor, Comics, DC Comics, depression, drugs, Green Arrow, Iron Man, Marvel Comics, Mental Health Week, Mind, Speedy, Superheroes, Tony Stark
As I’ve mentioned in earlier posts, Iron Man is one of my favorite Marvel heroes. Spider-Man is, of course, my favorite, but Iron Man is right up there in second place. If I had to pick a top three, Captain America would probably round it out.
As with most of their heroes, the creators at Marvel have given Tony Stark a human face. He’s a flawed individual. He has problems. Sure, he’s brilliant, rich, handsome, charming, and stylish, but he’s also a womanizer, an alcoholic, and a bit of a megalomaniac. Never mind the fact that he has a serious heart injury.
Dude’s messed up.
And that’s what makes him a great character. He’s got all this fantastic stuff going for him, but underneath it all, he’s just a human being. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Batman, Bruce Wayne, Captain America, Comics, Demon in a Bottle, Iron Man, J and B Productions, Jon Favreau, Joss Whedon, Marvel Comics, Marvel Studios, Movies, Peter Parker, Robert Downey Jr., Spider-Man, Superheroes, The Avengers, The Incredible Hulk, The Invincible Iron Man, Thor, Tony Stark
We take you now to a conference room somewhere in the blogosphere. Five superheroes, all veterans of the 1960s animation scene, gather to discuss an issue that has suddenly reappeared on their collective horizon.
Iron Man: Thanks for coming, fellas. The reason I asked you all to meet me here—
Hulk: Meetings! Tin-Head always calling meetings. Business brain can't think for self. Tin-Head can't take piss without calling meeting first.
Captain America: Now, Hulk, let's be fair here. We don't even know what Tony wants to talk about.
Hulk: No. But good bet it something Hulk not interested in.
Namor: I'd give that good odds. Because the list of things you are interested in could be rattled off in about three seconds.
Hulk: Short list, but making fish-meal from Namor's face on it. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: animation, Captain America, Hulk, Iron Man, Marvel Comics, Marvel Super Heroes, Namor, Sub-Mariner, Superheroes, theme songs, Thor, TV
I decided to wait a bit before commenting upon the whole "Disney acquires Marvel" thing. I had a bit of a knee-jerk reaction to it, I will admit, and I scowled and fumed a bit. But I decided not to go off half-cocked. I thought I'd wait a while, read some articles, and let it settle into the old brain somewhat.
Okay, here's the thing. I'm not an avid researcher of things Disney. I don't scour the internet looking for information that will support one view of Disney or another. Despite that, however, I seem to have developed a mental picture, both of Walt Disney the man and Disney the corporation, that is not particularly appealing.
Why do I have the impression that Walt Disney was a racist? Why do I have it in my head that he was interested in what the Nazis were doing in 1930s Germany? Why do I have the sense that Disney employees are overworked, underpaid, and subject to near-tyrannical rules and regulations?
Did these notions just appear unbidden in my head? Have I been reading the wrong websites? Have the opinions of many ill-informed readers and writers simply overwhelmed our current zeitgeist?
Or is there something to it? Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Business, Captain America, conservatism, corporations, Disney, family values, fascism, Marvel Comics, Marvel Studios, Nazi Germany, Walt Disney
Continuing with the trend I seem to be setting for Super Saturdays, I'd like to reflect upon the next in the quintet of daring defenders who comprise The Marvel Super Heroes of 1966—a gentle, agile, flexible, and articulate fellow by the name of… Hulk.
All cheekiness aside, however, I quite like the Hulk. He's been gray, he's been green, he's been a mindless brute, a semi-intelligent brute, and an articulate brute. But he's always been an exploration of our fear of radioactivity and our fear of our animal self.
Hulk has been portrayed differently by different writers over the years, but his essence has always remained the same. He's the powerful, savage alter-ego of a quiet, brilliant man. He's what happens when inhibitions fall away and instinct takes over. He epitomizes that secret desire we all have at various times to bust out of our socially-imposed shells and just… well… smash. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Ang Lee, Bruce Banner, Edward Norton, Eric Bana, Hulk, Incredible Hulk, Jennifer Connelly, Liv Tyler, Louis Leterrier, Marvel Comics, Marvel Studios, Marvel Super Heroes, Sam Elliott, William Hurt
I seem to have latched on to the old Marvel Super Heroes TV cartoon in my earlier superhero posts. Not surprising, really, considering I used to watch the show as a kid, and there's nothing quite like a childhood memory for pulling out the rose-colored glasses and the gauze-covered lens. When combined with the adult eyes of today, which can spot corniness at fifty paces, it makes for an odd mix of viewpoints.
This evening, we're battening down our hatches in this corner of the world, in anticipation of the arrival of Hurricane Bill. In honor of the occasion, I'd like to write a bit about another windy, wet, phenomenon: Namor, Prince of Atlantis, aka The Sub-Mariner.
Now, despite my having tremendous fondness for most things Marvel, I have to confess to a certain lack of enthusiasm for ol' Namor. I don't consider him a lame superhero, but neither do I think he's particularly cool. In fact, any time I've ever seen him in a story, he's been an arrogant, overbearing prick. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Atlantis, Avengers, Fantastic Four, Hulk, Human Torch, Marvel Comics, Marvel Studios, Namor, Sub-Mariner
